The proposed research examines two aspects of the relationship between family ties and health outcomes: (1) what determine the size and configuration of the kin networks of older adults and the social supports that these networks provide and, (2) what effect do these social supports have on the health and functioning of older adults? It uses data from three large national studies in the United States--the National Survey of Families and Households (NSFH), the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID), an the Medical Outcomes Study (MOS). This project consists of two subprojects. The first focuses on the kin networks and social supports available to older adults in the U.S. and Malaysia and the exchanges between kin, using the NSFH, MFLS, and PSID. The second subproject examines the effects of social support on health outcomes of the older and middle-aged adults over time in the U.S., using data from the Medical Outcomes Survey (MOS), and in Malaysia, using the MFLS.